From humble beginnings to the pinnacle of life

The bus swayed and rattled for almost an hour before we arrived.

The antique market in the south of the city is much larger than the one on the east street. It is a three-story old-fashioned building that looks gray and dusty on the outside, but inside it is a completely different world.

The first floor is full of stalls selling secondhand books, old clocks, and bronzeware.

The second floor is much more refined, with glass doors and spotlights on the storefronts, and the items displayed are also more sophisticated.

We went up the stairs and searched along the corridor. When we got to the middle, we saw a shop with a black sign with gold lettering.

Guo's Antiques.

The glass door was half open, and there were several pieces of porcelain on the shelves inside. Two calligraphy and paintings hung on the wall, and they didn't look like low-end goods.

I pushed the door open and went in, with Su Qing following closely behind me.

Behind the counter sat a fat man, around forty or fifty years old, bald, wearing a dark red linen shirt and a string of amber beads on his wrist, looking down at his phone.

Hearing the door open, he looked up and glanced at me, his gaze lingering on me for a second before sweeping over Su Qing.

I spoke first: "Boss Guo?"

Without looking up, he slowly replied, "Hmm, what's there to look at?"

"I heard you recently acquired a batch of antique jade pieces, so I came to take a look."

He then looked up, put his phone aside, and looked me up and down again without saying a word.

I remembered what Lao Zhou said yesterday: this person treats people differently based on their status.

I immediately replied, "A friend introduced him. He works in the pawnshop business. His surname is Wang."

Fatty Guo then raised his head again and said slowly, "I recently acquired some old stock, but I haven't sorted it out yet. What kind of stuff are you looking for? Name your range, and I'll see if I can find it."

I took out my phone, showed her a picture of the bracelet, and handed it to her: "Do you have this style of bracelet?"

Fatty Guo took it and glanced at it, but didn't rush to express his opinion.

He handed my phone back, slowly leaned back in his chair, and tapped his fingers twice on the table.

"This thing is a bit old, and it's quite nice. But if you want to find the exact same one, it'll be difficult."

"So I'm asking you, have you received it?"

He smiled, but the smile looked very perfunctory.

"I have received similar items before, but those kinds of goods are usually not kept for long and are sold on the same day."

My heart skipped a beat.

Old Zhou said he only brought the goods over to show Fatty Guo the night before last, and even if it was being resold, it shouldn't have been this fast.

I remained expressionless and continued, "Then who did you transfer it to?"

Fatty Guo waved his hand: "I can't disclose the client's information. If you're interested, I can ask around for you, but you'll have to pay a deposit first. If the buyer agrees to transfer the contract, the deposit is non-refundable."

This is clearly an outrageous demand.

Su Qing gently tugged at my sleeve from behind, and I immediately said, "No need, I'll look at other places."

He didn't try to stop him and picked up his phone again to scroll through it.

After leaving the shop, I led Su Qing to the corner of the stairwell before stopping.

Su Qing then spoke up, "He said he transferred it that very day, do you believe him?"

I shook my head: "I don't believe it. He said he'd transfer it that very day. Guess what he's up to?"

"A test?" Su Qing asked.

"Yes. He wants to see if I'm really serious about buying or just asking casually. If I'm in a hurry to pay the deposit, he'll raise the price on the spot, or even try to fool me with a fake."

Su Qing frowned slightly: "Then it seems the item might really be with him?"

I thought for a moment and said, "No rush. Now that we know the location of Fatty Guo's shop and what he looks like, all we have to do is keep watch."

"Defend?"

"Since he said he transferred it that day, it means the item is still in his possession. If he really had transferred it, he wouldn't have said so much to me; he would have just dismissed me with a single sentence."

After a pause, I added, "He's leaving himself some room to maneuver, hoping I'll raise the price later. So as long as I keep an eye on him, he'll definitely sell the bracelet in the next few days."

Su Qing paused for two seconds, then said, "Then I'll keep an eye on it with you."

I glanced at Su Qing, who was looking very serious, and felt a slight warmth in my heart.

This girl may seem pampered, but she never hides behind me and holds me back when something happens.

Even knowing that their opponent was Fang Heng, who had connections everywhere, and that the investigation was fraught with danger, they still chose to stand shoulder to shoulder without hesitation.

I nodded and said softly, "You don't need to keep watch, it's too exhausting. You go back to the courtyard first, I'll keep watch here."

"I'm not going back." Su Qing shook her head, her tone stubborn. "I'll be restless if I go back, so I'd rather stay with you. If he really tries to fool people with fakes, you might not be able to tell, but I can tell at a glance."

She was telling the truth.

That family heirloom bracelet had been with her since childhood and was ingrained in her very being.

Let alone high-quality counterfeits, she can spot even the best replicas instantly.

I didn't press the matter further and nodded in agreement: "Okay, let's divide the work. I'll keep an eye on the people coming in and out of the shop, and you keep an eye on the circulation of jade items and gift boxes, especially tightly sealed shipments that are being transported overnight."

Su Qing nodded immediately, instantly putting away her usual coquettishness.

We didn't linger in the antique market corridor, afraid that Fatty Guo would notice something was amiss.

I walked straight out of the building, went around to the milk tea shop across the street, and found a seat by the window.

I ordered two hot drinks and kept a close eye on the situation at Guo's Antique Shop.

As evening approached, the number of customers in the antique market gradually decreased, and the stalls on the first floor closed one after another, leaving only a few high-end shops on the second floor with their lights still on.

The old street has lost its daytime hustle and bustle, and has gained a sense of quiet gloom.

I took out my phone and sent a message to Dao Ge: "Dao Ge, are you familiar with Fatty Guo, the owner of Guo's Antique Shop in the South City Antique Market?"

Less than two minutes after the message was sent, Dao Ge called back immediately.

As soon as the call connected, Dao Ge asked me, "Ye Zi, you've gotten close to Fatty Guo?"

"Do you know him?" I asked in a deep voice.

"I know him all too well. This old fox is a middleman in Jiangzhou's black market, specializing in laundering high-end stolen goods. He's audacious, greedy, and has powerful backers. No one dares to mess with him."

My heart skipped a beat, and I quickly asked, "Is the person backing you up Fang Heng?"

There was a two-second silence on the other end of the phone, and then Dao Ge's voice carried a hint of apprehension:

"I can't be completely sure, but in the last six months, Fatty Guo's place has suddenly become quite assertive. He used to show some favor to people, but now he doesn't give face to anyone."

After he finished speaking, he paused for a moment, then solemnly added:

"Brother, be careful. I'm not sure who's behind Fatty Guo, but you're openly camping out at his place, so you're likely to be spotted. Don't be impulsive and fight back."

"I know what I'm doing."

I hung up the phone and turned around to see Su Qing looking at me with a pale face.

Clearly, she overheard my conversation with Dao Ge.

"Is it really Fang Heng?"

I shook my head, and before I could speak, Su Qing said through gritted teeth:

"What exactly is he trying to do? He even went so far as to use the black market to target us, just to take my bracelet and deliberately torture us?"

Although I'm not sure if he did it, it's been a long time since the pawnshop owner ran away, and now the bracelet has ended up on the black market.

It seems that all of this is related to him!